The implementation of hydroponic systems has several advantages over traditional farming: 1) it can produce much higher crop yields in the same footprint of traditional farming, 2) it supersedes the concerns and constraints of soil health, 3) it can be installed in places where agriculture or gardening is difficult or impossible, 4) it uses less water, 5) it has faster growth and relative freedom from soil diseases and weeds, and finally, 6) it provides more consistent crops. In addition, a system configured with automation results in less labor, cost, and maintenance.
Hydroponic systems have two basic structural designs: a horizontal and a vertical configuration. The horizontal structure requires a larger footprint and features a tray which supplies the nutrient rich solution. These systems generally rely on a static solution culture where the plant roots are immersed in the solution. A possible drawback to this implementation is that the roots may not be exposed to sufficient oxygen which may reduce the plant yield. A solution to this drawback is the nutrient film technique (NFT) or ebb and flow (also know as flood and drain). NFT suspends the plants so the roots of the plant hang down in a hole where a shallow stream or “film” of water runs across the root tips. The problem with NFT is that if the structure tips or the water pump fails, the plants will die quickly because there is no media to hold water. The ebb and flow method uses a reservoir to hold the nutrient solution and above the reservoir is a tray or chamber that holds the plant and media. A pump will take the nutrient solution from the reservoir and flood the tray or chamber until the media can absorb the appropriate amount of solution. It will then drain back into the reservoir. The problem with the ebb and flow is the possible height restrictions with the plants due to the elevation of the reservoir trays. Mineral build-up can cause a nutrient lockout, which can cause a nutrient deficiency.
The vertical structure hydroponic system has a small footprint allowing multiple plants to grow in a perpendicular orientation to the ground. Thus, the systems take advantage of vertical space to increase plant density. They generally employ a drip to catch system (gravity feed) to deliver nutrients to the plants. The nutrient drip is emitted at the top of the container stack and flows through each container to supply nutrients to the crop. The plants are grown in a media that will support the plant and allow unrestricted nutrient drip flow. These systems can have a constant feed or timed dripped configuration. There are a number of design constraints that need to be addressed in a vertical stacked hydroponic system: 1) the installation area needs to be on a prepped surface, 2) there isn't a simple way to replace a container within the assembled stack without disassembling the stack, 3) and the time consumed in the initial setup.
What is needed is a configurable modular hydroponics system that is designed for simplicity and sustainability. The system features should include: installation for multiple terrains, simple and quick installation, standalone or matrix configurations, drip to catch or drip recirculate configuration, electric or solar configuration, indoor or outdoor configurations and efficient relocation capabilities.
Prior art hydroponic systems can be seen in the Nagels et al. U.S. Pat. No. 9,101,099 for a hydroponic growing system using a plurality of pots suspended one above the other on cables hanging downwardly from a frame and including water and light delivery systems. The Darlington U.S. Pat. No. 7,243,460 is for a support for vertical hydroponic plants matrix. The Nuttman U.S. Pat. No. 8,418,403 is for hanging stacked plant holders and watering systems. The Collins et al. U.S. Pat. No. 9,591,814 teaches a lightweight modular adjustable vertical hydroponic growing system for cultivation of plants. The Wager U.S. Pat. No. 9,622,427 is for a hydroponic system for growing plants which uses a bamboo tower having a grow chamber with a water chamber formed therein. The U.S. Patent to Byun, U.S. Pat. No. 6,470,625 is for a seedling raising device for aerial seed collection of farm products while the U.S. Patent to Murphy, U.S. Pat. No. 8,756,860, is for a plant hanger with a watering system.
The present modular sustainable hydroponics system is designed to automate a hydroponic system. The system can be quickly setup to accommodate different situations and environments. It can enable consistent food accessibility and diversity down to a household level in rural and/or urban settings. In addition, it can be configured to function indoors or outdoors and installed for perpetual or temporary projects. The system is non-invasive to the landscape and only requires a pair of posts placed in the ground. The system can be assembled and disassembled quickly and can be installed virtually anywhere without destroying crops.